Today on slashdot, an interesting article link is posted about a couple who is facing charges over trying to do what the police are supposed to do: protect them from violent offenders. The slashdot editorial reads:

“A Georgia couple, apparently tired of people speeding past their house, installed a camera and radar gun on their property. After it was installed, they caught a police office going 17MPH over the posted limit. They brought this to the attention of the local police department, and are now being forced to appear in front of a judge to answer to charges of stalking.”

The slashdot editorial also links to the original article, posted in the Daily Tribune of Cartersville, Georgia.

My comment to the slashdot editorial is as follows:

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Like any job that any of us have, most people work in order to better their own lives. We work out deals with our employers to enter a relationship where both parties profit — the worker doesn’t have to worry about handling the day-to-day surivival of the business, and the employer fulfills a position that he/she can not do as efficiently as the employee. All employment is mutually beneficial or the two parties would not enter into the agreement in the first place. This is true of all positions, but it is especially true of any “public” official — cops, public school teachers, politicians.

The problem with public officials is that they have the right to use excessive force in order to protect their position. The average citizen has no right to call out any public official on any illegal actions since the average citizen has no real power against non-elected public officials. If a cop breaks the law, there is almost nothing you can do to fight them. There is a lot they can do, off the public record, that can harm you more than they harm you in their lawbreaking. Remember, cops are not here to protect you, there are there to protect their jobs — and many of them love the power they wield over the average citizen. Why else do we have cop unions?

We are not free from the tyranny of cameras — many police cars already have them, and they are not audited by any watchdog group. Our phones can be tapped, but we have no right to listen in on the phones of those who supposedly serve us. The public official is the watchdog of the general public, not vice versa. Is it any wonder that I am anti-State?

What you do on your property is no one’s responsibility but yours. If someone’s light-rays that bounce off their body enter your property, they are now YOUR property. You might even say that those light-rays are pollution, but I think that is pushing the definition of pollution a little too far. When a bunch of cops stopped an alleged speeder in front of my old house, I complained about the constant blue and red lights and strobes keeping me awake — I was told I have no right to prevent it. If a cop speeds in front of my house, I should be able to to make note of it, but I can not. Informing your elected official about the problem will do only one thing — give them reason to make a new law protecting their kin in tyranny. It surely won’t help you, it won’t bring you more freedom.

Don’t be shocked as the tyrants find more ways to increase their power of tyranny. They are not here to help you, there are not here to protect you — there are there to protect their own incomes and pensions, and you are powerless to stop it as long as you continue to vote into office people who love the authoritarian powers attached to both the liberal and conservative sides of the political system. When will people learn that it isn’t left or right, it is pro-tyranny and against-tyranny — liberals and conservatives are on the “pro-tyranny” side of the coin. The opposite side of the coin is not a libertarian, as some might think, but an anarcho-capitalist.

You will reap what you sow, friends. These folks put up cameras because the police did nothing for them to prevent speeders. This is to be expected — when you need help, you won’t find any.
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Visit the slashdot link to read the replies to my original comment, and see how I’ve been moderated. Discuss this article at the anarcho-capitalism forum.

By Adam Dada
Indianopolis, IN

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Following the story of Bears players Terry ‘Tank’ Johnson and his episode with getting his defensive weapons taken from him by the Gurnee Police department, new news from the other day^[1] has Terry’s security guard murdered in a nightclub that Tank was at. A security guard is there to protect famous people — our very own President has them (armed), the Mayor of Chicago has them (armed), the Governor of Illinois has them (armed) but Terry Johnson is not allowed to have an armed security guard in the City of Chicago, nor in the Village of Gurnee. Why is it that politicians have the right to protect themselves but individuals don’t?

Terry lost his security guard and best friend, Wilie Posey, was killed in a nightclub shootout just days after Tank was arrested for illegal firearm possession. His crime? Alledgely owning weapons without a State ID card targetting him as a weapon owner. Did he hurt anyone? No. Did he threaten anyone? No. He had weapons, and the State didn’t like it. Those very weapons may have helped defend the attack on Posey and Johnson at the nightclub — but the City of Chicago makes it illegal to carry firearms, even if you’re just traveling through town. Friends and cronies of the Mayor and Sheriff of Chicago ARE allowed to conceal carry, but few if any permits are approved annually in the all-powerful city. What a surprise that Posey was unable to defend himself.

I personally am a pacifist — I’ve repudiated the use of force even in defensive ways. I no longer believe in my personal need for a weapon, but I do believe that citizens and residents of a nation or a city should have equal rights to own the same weapons that the State does. While I am not pro-armed revolution, it does make sense that the less the State has over its citizens, the less damage it can do to their inherent rights.

Tank needs a T-shirt that reads “rape my girlfriend, we’re unarmed” and a big sign outside his house that says “rob my house, we’re unarmed.” Maybe he should get the license plates “UNARMED” on his SUV, so when the next criminal that the police don’t bother to watch comes to rob someone, they’ll know exactly who to go after — the one who can’t defend themselves because the law doesn’t let them.

Discuss this article at the anarcho-capitalism forum.